In Search of the Perfect Summer Sandal: The Sanuk Roots

posted by gumptiongearJuly 11, 20110 comments

As our search for the perfect summer sandal continues we stumbled across a quote from Caskie Stinnett who once noted “I hate having my life disrupted by routine.” If, like Caskie, routine is your own personal arch nemesis then you’re going to love Roots from Sanuk.

On the comfort Factor…
In Sanuk’s world fusion of funk meets function these sandals favor the funky fashion side, but don’t let the slender lines of this flip fool you. The roots have a comfy toe post that never threatened to “uproot”. A textured outsole keeps you steady whether you’re lounging by the pool moving to the beat at next summer BBQ rave party — oh how we love a good summertime BBQ Rave!

The surprisingly soft “high rebound” EVA footbed provides massive shock absorption and plenty of lasting support benefiting you in two ways: (1) Less foot fatigue, and; (2) You can wear the Roots all day and you can rest assured they remain easy on your back.

Let’s be honest, when it comes to the standard straps of some beach style flips, they are more reminiscent of wearing sackcloth on a journey of repentance. A soft moisture wicking textile lining feels more like salvation for the feet giving reason to rejoice in dry and wet conditions alike. Couple the heavenly straps with the approximate 5 oz. weight of the Roots and you’ll want to wear these angels everywhere.

On the style factor…No longer must you suffer wearing the same old standarized black flip flops that your 75 year old neighbor is sporting. The Roots line up sets a new standard of funky cool and stylized awesomeness.

Or for those that prefer a more island inspired style you can be Rasta cool in the Roots Irie flip. Deemed by Sanuk as the unofficial sandal of Rastafarians everywhere, these flips feature a tri-color footbed with a Rasta-fied logo at the heel. After all the only thing that makes the Sanuk logo happier than normal is the addition of dreadlocks.

Either option ensures that you’re feet are going to be stylin’ and profilin’ with these flips constructed of synthetic vegan-friendly goodness.

Room for Improvement? Like its Fault Line cousin, the Root’s hardened EVA happy face outsoles provided perfect flex and solid traction both on the beach and at 10,000 ft elevation on trails above Lake Tahoe (the Gumption Crew tests everywhere), but in an ideal world our crew still prefers a rubber outsole for a little more sticky grip.

Secondly for those whose feet dwell in the fuzzy land of ‘tweener’ sizes be advised that there are no half sizes. That means your tweener feet will need to chose either a size up or down – but either way your feet will still be well taken care of with the Roots.

The Bottom Line…
When it’s all said and done, the Roots won over the Gumption Crew. The combined goodness of comfort and funkified style make these a stellar take on the standard beach cruiser and well worth a trip to the Sanuk vault of goodness. In fact our review time with the Roots has ensured one thing… we’ll be purchasing more pairs to satisfy jealous family members

In Search of the Perfect Summer Sandal: The Sanuk Roots was last modified: December 14th, 2011 by gumptiongear